


Accepting Where You're At

by ShyGirlHello



Category: My Babysitter's A Vampire
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:22:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 20,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23865967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShyGirlHello/pseuds/ShyGirlHello
Summary: Benny has never had an outlet for his problems besides running. He ran from most of everything. But he can't seem to outrun his current life. Until he meets the geek he's always been destined to meet. Who really is Ethan Morgan? What does he get sucked into after "the best party of his life"?
Relationships: Erica Jones/Benny Weir, Ethan Morgan/Benny Weir
Comments: 29
Kudos: 39





	1. Pleaser

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first work in this fandom. It's so hard to find multi-chaptered Bethan fics, so why not make them? Anyways, I hope you like this! I'm open to any suggestions, comments, or criticism :)

Benny was running out of breath as his legs pushed him around the track. In through his nose and out of his mouth, it was the same rhythm he’d known since he’d started running from bullies in second grade – translated into adolescence after he’d started running for the track team. Benny had never really had any reason not to run. There was a reason every time stress built up in his life.

When his mother had passed away, Benny hadn’t known how to deal with it. He’d never had a best friend to talk to and his grandma wasn’t an option. There was a time when Benny had thought he’d made a friend, but Rory was more of a small nuisance than someone to let know his deepest, darkest emotions. In high school, the tides had change for him. He’d gone from a geek with a wardrobe of only striped polos and khakis to a track star with popularity and girls at his every move. He’d never really wanted that, though. 

Sure, maybe the kid who was bullied from his big nose and bunny teeth would’ve wanted popularity, but that kid didn’t know what it was like to never have any time to be alone. He’d had his head so far in the clouds that the ground, dead and wilted from the entrails of reality, looked so damn good. Benny shook his head and scrunched his nose, sweat dripping from his chin. He didn’t need to think about stuff like that at the moment.

“Weir! We’ve got class in ten minutes!”

His head shot up at Gabriel, his supposed friend. A familiarity only Benny understood stuck with him, but there was also a nasty taste that he always left in Benny’s mouth. Maybe it was the smell of cigarettes that always stuck to his clothes or the three-in-one body wash that he used.

“Got it. I’ll meet you inside.”

With a resolute sigh, Benny watched his friend go and grabbed his water bottle from the bleachers. The nip of September chill was starting to turn his sweaty skin to ice; he needed to remember to start bringing his warmer track outfit since it was starting to get chilly again. 

A person walking past the fence that lined the sides of the field caught Benny’s attention. Ethan Morgan, resident nerd and the target of ego-riddled jocks. He’d known who Ethan was since grade school, being neighbors and all kind of made it hard to avoid the guy. He remembered the way Ethan would play by himself in his backyard as Benny would watch from the window next to the piano his grandmother insisted on teaching him to play. 

Benny flinched when one of the guys he knew from the hockey team shoulder checked Ethan. He could feel the scrapes on Ethan’s hands where he caught himself on the concrete. The cheerleader, Stephanie, next to the hockey-puck-obsessed ego maniac laughed as if it was the funniest thing she’d seen in decades. 

Ethan just set his stare into a hard glare as they passed. His phone laid on the sidewalk and Ethan retrieved it with a groan, shouldering his backpack back into a comfortable position. Benny sighed, trudging to the locker room.

“And as the diffusion process continues, the cell- “

The bell rang shrilly, student bodies all but running from the room. Benny stood and stretched, his back popping in a few places. The day had started just as normal as it had always been. Run until his lungs burned before school, fake it through social interactions, shrug off Erica, take notes, repeat. Lunch was always a little different every day. It was a new conversation every time he tuned into his friends’ chatter – the way some girls boobs looked in a white top, which school’s butt was gonna get kicked at the next game. Boring. Useless. 

“We have to go, dude!”

“Benny, you up for a party tonight?”

The brunet looked up from where he was absentmindedly scrolling through his phone, eyes wide and mouth a little slack. “Uh, I’m gonna have to pass this time.”

Images of the last time they’d dragged him to some party made Benny want to throw up. He’d gotten locked in a room with Erica after she’d had a couple drinks and Benny, not wanting to make the blonde cry, had pretended to pass out after some half-ass makeout session. Like a sour reminder, the devil leaning on his shoulder screeched in his ear. 

“Come on, party pooper! This could be our night!” Erica tightened her grip around him, and it took everything in Benny’s power to not elbow her in the stomach.

Manners, he thought to himself. Manners maketh a man. He snorted at his own reference; a wince shot through him along with the pain of Erica’s slap to his shoulder. An indignant ‘don’t laugh at me’ pulled him fully out of his thoughts.

“I know it could,” a smile stretched on his face but only Benny knew it meant nothing; he was good at hiding it like that. “I just have a ton of work to get to.” Lie “Grandma would literal have my ass on her mantle if I don’t get straight A’s.” Truth.

Erica pouted but settled for the excuse, curling her arms around his waist. It was almost like she was trying to squeeze the life out of him. 

“Moving along,” Gabriel grinned smugly. “Word on the street’s that a scout from UWO is coming to the next meeting.” He stuck his elbow into Benny’s ribs. 

That was all he’d been hearing about since the coach had moved Benny up to the varsity team. Scout and scholarships and full rides to colleges he couldn’t give two shits about. If he was being honest, Benny didn’t know if college was even for him. If it hadn’t been for his grandma’s constant watchful eye, Benny would’ve been passing every class with C’s. He didn’t find much of it interesting besides the occasional plant centered lesson in biology. He’d made plans to travel in America for awhile before settling down in some uptight college dorm. That was what the Benny on the inside wanted. 

“Really?” With a forceful brow raised, Benny steeled his gaze into one of determination. “Guess I’ll have to hit more practice runs.”

Gabriel whooped, causing a few people to glance in their direction. “And I’ll keep you motivated, man! We’ve got this.”

“Imagine it! Us, sitting in OWU, babes up the wazoo and enough booze to make an Irish man blush,” Gabriel’s eyes were bright and Benny fought to keep the grimace off of his face. 

He chuckled and looked back down at his phone. Gabriel seemed to notice. 

“What’s up? You’ve been doing that a lot lately.”

“Doing what?”

Gabriel scoffed, a face incredulous. “You’re not focusing, man.”

“I’m focused!”

“On your phone! Or your shoes!” Gabriel snatched Benny’s phone, leaning back when the other teen tried to grab it back. “Its senior year! You’re letting your whole life pass you by with your head down.”

Benny sighed, his shoulders sagged, and his eyes felt heavy. “I’ve just had some stuff on my mind is all.”

Erica cooed, “You know you can talk to me about anything.”

Benny rubbed his face, mostly to cover up the grimace he involuntarily made. “I’m fine, guys. Seriously.” He grabbed his phone back from his friend’s hand and stood, wrenching out of Erica’s grip. 

“Come on, dude. I’m just trying to look out for your future!” 

Future was the one thing Benny could control.


	2. Window

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm publishing the second chapter a little sooner since I don't often have wifi. As always keep the reviews coming :)

Of all the things Ethan had ever thought could happen to him, he was really unprepared for the present. Sarah had let him know that things were getting worse for wear and it wasn’t likely she’d be back anytime soon. So, the poor kid was all on his own in a high school where who knows what could happen. 

Music blasted from his headphones, drowning out the sound soft wind whipping the pre-autumn leaves. It hadn’t been too hard of a day for him but he was still in need of the occasional bump of bass in his ear drums to keep the thoughts of panicking out of his mind. It hadn’t been long ago where he hadn’t needed the stress relief, but with danger at every corner, Ethan figured it’d be okay to shut out the world every once in awhile.

Pulling his jean jacket closed to his body, Ethan blew out a tired breath from his throat. His shoulder throbbed a little from being thrown against a locker yet again and he couldn’t shake the feeling of being a little too insecure for comfort. Usually Sarah talked him out of his insecurities; she always knew how Ethan’s mind ticked. What made him happy, sad, or just flat out bored. His nerdiness had rubbed on her to the point that their Friday movie nights had turned into her asking him question after interested question about the characters on the screen. 

The teen nearly jumped out of his skin when a flash of purple and black slid past him. He pulled out of his thoughts and his gaze followed Benny Weir skating down the down. The other boy had his focus set straight forward, either ignoring Ethan or just not seeing him walking. 

The guy had always been an enigma to Ethan, closed off and unfocused in the recent couple of months. He’d had similar roots to Ethan: a nerd with too much knowledge about obscure sci-fi movies and a mischievous smile. But that had changed in high school. He’d watched Benny’s spark die out, replaced with a glazed over look in his eyes and an obvious distaste for his forceful girlfriend and friends. He felt a little bad for him.

But Benny had also been a part of Ethan’s school bullying dilemma. Never a physical part, but a part, nonetheless. He couldn’t begin to count the times Benny had pretended not to notice one of his pig-headed friends knock him over or to ignore his calls for help when he had been shoved in lockers. 

Ethan’s phone buzzed in his hand, a text from Sarah.

‘Ethan, you can’t be scared of those guys forever.’

“So, how’s school going, bud?”

Ethan grunted as he helped his dad position the couch in his mom’s new placement idea. She was watching from the archway, her hands on her hips as she watched and a thoughtful look in her eye. 

“You know, same as always. Getting shoved in a locker must be the best joke in the history of…ever, I guess.”

The couch landed on Ethan’s side with a loud thud. He let out a winded breath and rubbed his sweaty palms on his jeans. His mom tilted her head, and Ethan’s muscles ached again with the knowledge that she wasn’t happy with the placement. 

“You’ve gotta stand up for yourself, Ethan. How are they ever going to stop taunting you if you just go along with it?” His dad lightly scolded. 

“Try against the window,” his mother shifted her weight to her other foot.

Ethan grunted again as they picked up his couch. “Don’t you remember what happened last time?”

“It was just a black eye, kiddo. You used to do more damage whacking yourself with your own lightsaber in the backyard.”

“Yeah, but,” Ethan yelled out and let go of his side, grabbing his smashed hand and holding it to his chest. He sent a glare to his dad, who gave him a sheepish smile. The couch still had to be moved, though, so Ethan picked it back up. But not without a disinterested attitude he hoped would communicate effectively to his parents. 

“I just though things would be different for you, son. You’ve been hanging around Sarah more and more. You know, you should ask her out on a date,” his dad suggested like it was a new revelation. “You could get out of the house more. Experience life before you go off to college.”

Ethan resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “Dad, I don’t need girl advice.

“I’m working my way to asking her out, okay? I just want to get to know her before I make a move. Can you imagine if I took her to a restaurant, she’s allergic to everything on the menu?”

They placed the couch against the window finally and Ethan’s mom let out a happy gasp, “That’s perfect!”

His dad laughed quietly and shook his head. “The way you think baffled me, but you’re coming from the right place. Just,” He placed a hand on his son’s shoulder, “Don’t wait to long. Chances for good things don’t last a lifetime, Ethan.”

Ethan looked at his hand and gave a nervous chuckle. He ducked away and crossed his arms. “Right.”

Benny slowly spun his model Galactittack warship in his hands, his mind swirling with different thoughts. His grandma had left for the weekend and his phone was on the verge of shutting itself off for its own mercy with the amount of messages he was getting. Alone time was hard to find when it came to popularity. He’d found that having more friend than fingers and toes came with no privacy and absolutely no silence. 

Setting down the model, Benny begrudgingly grabbed his phone and scrolled through social media. Pictures of the party going on at some older guy’s house dominated his feed, broken up every once in awhile by pictures of family and the occasional post from funny pages. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d talked to his old friends. The ones not obsessed with partying their lives away.

Erica’s face took over his screen and a loud groan escaped his lips. Benny sat up and grabbed a random textbook from his lap, opening it to some meaningless page. 

Swiping on the screen, loud rave music and flash lights came into view. “Benny, baby!”

Benny flinched at the obvious slur in her words, biting his lip and glancing at the red button at the bottom of the screen, “Hey.”

“I miss you so much! I wish you were here, babe.” Erica moved to what Benny guessed was a closet or some empty room, the music bleeding through the wall and the soft lighting contrasting the bump of the bass.

“I wish I was there, too” Fake syrup-y sweetness oozed out of Benny’s tone. “Grandma’s got a close eye on me tonight. Someone snitched about the party so she’s standing guard by the door again.”

Erica whined and the picture shook as she stomped her foot, “Can’t you sneak out of the window?” 

Benny glanced over at his window. The blinds were open, and he could see into the bedroom directly adjacent from his. Inside, he could see Ethan typing on his computer. His tongue was poking out from between his lips and he would glance down occasionally at whatever he was writing down. Benny couldn’t tear his eyes away for some reason.

“Ben!” Oh. Right.

“Sorry, was thinking about it,” Benny lied through his teeth. “I don’t want to get grounded, though. With that scout coming soon, I’ve gotta practice as much as I can and I can’t really do it when I’m locked in my room.”

Erica rolled her eyes, “Well, just for the record, you would’ve got really lucky tonight.”

Benny felt like he was going to throw up.

A knock on his front door made Benny jump a little. He gave Erica a quick apology and hung up with a promise to talk to her tomorrow. Throwing the book down, Benny made his way down the stairs and opened the front door. Mrs. Morgan stood there with a soft smile.

“Hey, Benjamin. Your grandma said she was going to be gone for the weekend and I thought I’d just drop by and bring you some dinner.”

Benny’s eyebrows disappeared under his hair and words became hard to form. The Morgans had really never paid any mind to him. He knew his grandma was chummy with them, but he didn’t even know that they knew his name. In hindsight, he probably should’ve figured his grandma had mentioned him once or twice. He was her grandson after all. 

“Thank you,” he shifted his weight uncomfortably, his hands stuck on the doorframe. Mrs. Morgan gave him a tight-lipped smile, her hands still holding out the Tupperware. 

“Oh!” Benny quickly took the food from her and hoped he wasn’t as awkward as he felt right now. 

Mrs. Morgan laughed softly, “It’s not problem at all.” She took a step back but took an excited breath. “You know, my son is your age. You’re always welcome to come hang.” Benny tried not to cringe at the slang. “The offer is always there.” 

Benny nodded slowly and waved a little in a good-bye. Once the older woman was off his porch, Benny shut the door and let out a huff of breath. He opened the container and seen a neatly packaged meatloaf with broccoli and carrots. He smiled and set it in the kitchen to eat later. 

His phone buzzed in his pocket again and Benny took it out to look at the message. 

One picture message from Erica.

Benny rolled his eyes and shoved his phone back in his pocket. It was one thing to talk to him in innuendos and another to just be straight up desperate. 

Once in his room again, Benny couldn’t help but to look out of his window again. The bedroom across was still lit up but Ethan wasn’t there. The teen tried to ignore the pang in his chest.


	3. Into to Anxiety

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have returned with another chapter! Benny's reasons for being blind to Ethan is revealed and Ethan reminds everyone of a kicked puppy. Reviews are always welcome and encouraged! :)

“It was totally awesome! My mom freaked, of course, but, like, what was I supposed to do? Not get laid?”

Benny snorted and leaned against his locker. His friends were discussing the party from Friday night and Benny was in a good mood, so he had decided to join them in the discussion. His legs were sore from his early morning workout, but it was food for the soul - or at least that’s what Benny reasoned. Erica had called out sick to school so one weight had been lifted off the tons sitting on Benny’s shoulder.

“Benny, what are you doing,” his grandma had asked early that morning. Five a.m. was too early of a time for questions so all he could do was give her the stupidest look he could muster.

“Oh, come now, you don’t think I’ve seen the way you walk around here? If you slouch anymore the sloths won’t have anything else to call their own.” She had put her hands on her hips and tilted her head at him as if Benny could even understand what she was talking about.

“I’ve just been kinda tired, ‘sall. There’s some kind of scout coming to the meet in a couple weeks, so I’ve been training extra hard.”

His grandma had sighed and threw her hands up. Benny had flinched and pulled the blankets closer to his body. He wanted the star-themed fabric to swallow him up and he could just float in space forever, no one to bother him. That would be the life. Drifting in a void and touching a star was honestly the coolest thing, ever. Like the Sandra Bullock movie, but with less spinning and not dying.

He had waited for the lecture to come but instead he opened his eyes to her giving him a comforting smile and her hand gently combing through his bedhead. “Are you happy?”

Benny shook his head, trying to stir away from the conversation they’d had. His friends were high-fiving and Benny chuckled. Sometimes, they were just buffoons being kids in high school. Those were the people he liked. He missed the days where he could just be a kid. Now it was all about grades and partying while getting black-out drunk. For something that people did to have fun, it was such a chore.

“’Sup, loser,” Gabriel taunted some kid Benny couldn’t see. Some poor guy must’ve had the displeasure of crossing paths with his friend. Gabriel was known to be ruthless in the morning. With their backs turned and everyone’s focus on the taunting, Benny was free to look as displeased and angry as he wanted. This was the thing he absolutely hated. The teasing and violence. Pushing and punching. It reminded him of the time in middle school when some punk kid punched him so hard that he’d spit out the last of his baby teeth. His jaw ached at the memory.

But he knew there was no way to right the wrongs. He’d tried once and, as some sort of sick initiation, he’d been forced to beat the living crap out of some poor freshman or face the consequences. The kid had cried so hard, begged even, and Benny had partially died on the inside. Yeah, it was easier to be quiet.

“Aww, Morgan.” Benny’s head snapped up and, if he could, Benny would’ve pulled his own eyes out. “Are you gonna cry?”

Ethan was cowering against a locker, an orange folder clutched in his hands. Benny could see a cut bleeding on his lip, slowly swelling and turning rosy red. His hair had a piece sticking straight out, most likely pulled by one of Benny’s beefy friends, and Benny reached a hand out to rub his own head as if it would ease the pain for Ethan. The shorter boy had his head down, his form shaking like he’d just gotten out of a pool in the middle of January.

“What’s this? Some geek pamphlet?” Gabriel wrenched the orange folder out of Ethan’s hands.

“Hey! Stop!” Ethan tried to reach back but one of the jocks landed a punch in his stomach that had Ethan doubling over and coughing loudly.

“Ethics of Animal Abuse Organizations,” Gabriel read off in a voice that Benny supposed guessed was a mock of a professor. “Is this…Is this homework?” Gabriel laughed.

“Gabe. Come on, man.” Benny stepped forward but his voice was drowned out by the sounds of paper ripping. Time seemed stopped all of a sudden. Benny laughed at his own joke about being in a movie somewhere in the back of his mind.

In freeze frame, Gabriel’s blue eyes had a fire behind them, and his hands were half way through ripping up the orange folder. Ethan was staring up at him with puppy dog eyes, all of his hard work turned into literal piece of trash. Benny had one foot forward, his hands on Gabriel’s shoulders. The students around them a blur of both shocked and snickering faces.

Time resumed and Gabriel threw paper at Ethan’s face. “Next time, make sure you don’t bump into me, dweeb.” He spit in Ethan’s direction, shrugging off Benny’s hands. “Let’s go, guys.”

Ethan kneeled on the floor, his heart breaking painfully. He’d worked for days on that paper. Poured his heart and soul into every word. ‘Something that you’re passionate about’ his English teacher had said. And now his passion project was in pieces on the floor.

Benny stared at him with wide eyes. He was seriously friends with a guy who couldn’t have the slimmest idea of humanity. Shame filled his guilt, threatening to spill out of his mouth like vomit.

“I’m so sorry,” he muttered.

“Benny!” Gabriel was at the end of the hall, staring at him with his arms crossed. He stretched his arms out and gave Benny a look that said ‘well?’. He knew that look and if he didn’t high tail it out of there, he’d have another thing to cry about at night.

Ethan didn’t even look up as Benny slowly backed away. His hands were clutching the pieces of paper, shaking harder than they’ve ever had the pleasure of doing before. Tears spilled freely, not a care in his mind as people watched on. Benny all but jumped out of his skin as Ethan suddenly shot up and bolted out of the doors. He swallowed back the lump in his throat, his words going with the saliva.

Outside of the school, Ethan ran to the tree he and Sarah had designated as their safe spot. It was out of view from the window – even the one from the teachers’ lounge that seemed to pivot in 360 to see every inch of the school yard. There was even a spot where the ground caved in on the root and was small enough to hide one, maybe two people at a time.

Ethan clutched his chest as he fought to breathe normal again, but the squeeze of his lungs was getting too painful. He reached into one of the pockets of his cargo shorts and wiped away the tears in his eyes, smudging dirt onto his face as he dialed the familiar number.

It rang once.

Twice.

Three times and Ethan felt the sting of new tears and dirt in his eyes.

“Hello? Ethan, what is it? I’m in class.”

“Sarah!” Ethan coughed, his stomach still in distress from being pummeled. “Please, I need you to come get me.”

Sarah made a noise on the other line, like shutting a door a little too loudly. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”

Ethan hiccuped, “I can’t be here without you, Sarah. They’re even worse!”

Sarah sighed and Ethan bit his lip, wincing and reaching a hand up to touch the split he hadn’t noticed. “I told you, pipsqueak. It’s only until I stop being so homesick.”

Ethan muttered an acknowledgement. He heard voices and the sound of Sarah telling someone she’d be right back. “What happened?”

“They tore up my paper. The one I was telling you about.”

“Don’t you have a copy of it?”

Ethan nodded, sighing when he realized she couldn’t see him. “Yes, but-“

His shoulders deflated when he heard her slap the side of her leg or the wall, “Problem solved, then. It’s like how I explained to you. If you don’t fuel their ego trip, they’ll get bored. Weir and Angelo can get their rocks off to something else.”

Ethan thought back to the incident. He could’ve sworn he heard Benny say ‘sorry’. But that couldn’t be real, right? Maybe he was hearing things. Or Benny was calling him a sorry something. The guy probably didn’t even know his name.

“You’re right. I just got so worked up.”

“It’s okay. I know it’s hard without good ol’ Sarah there to punch some suckers for you.”

Ethan felt a chuckle bubble out of him. “I miss you.”

“I miss you, too. What would I do without my little buddy?”

The smile faded from Ethan’s face. “Okay, easy there with the nicknames.”

“Bye, Ethan.” Sarah smiled as she heard the boy say it back and hung up. Shaking her head, she made a mental note to kick some ass when she got back home.

* * *

One foot in front of the other. Hit the ground and pick it up again. Benny breathed in and out, felling the air around him whipping like a chaos as he jogged around the school. His heart was racing in tune with his thoughts. Usually, his mind would be blank by now but there was way too much in the atmosphere for the usual calm to wash over him.

He hadn’t seen Ethan in the hallways since that morning. It made his nerves pick at his skin, leaving angry sores of worry and shame behind it. He tilted his head to the sky, not paying much mind to the path in front of him; he knew it like the back of his hand anyways.

The clouds had gathered, and, in the distance, there was a smell of fresh rain falling somewhere Benny didn’t know. A girl waved at him from the corner of his vision and he flashed a fake smile, showing all of his teeth. It was like letting them know he was dangerous behind the sweetness he lied about. But only he knew that. Benny’s thoughts wandered back to Ethan. He’d seen pieces of the paper in the hallway between each class and had even picked one up. ‘Again’ was typed on it in Times New Roman. His hands went to his pocket subconsciously, rough fingers tracing over the piece of paper snug in there. Head back down, Benny slowed his pace to a brisk walk.

“Benjamin, pick it back up!” Coach Stevens hollered at him. How he managed to slow in front of the track field was beyond the green-eyes teens comprehension. Benny bit back a growl of frustration, pushing forward at an even jog again. Usually, running made him feel better but there were no calm waters in his chest. No, it was a tsunami, cursing the village of emotions living in his heart.

Gabriel caught up with him a few seconds later. “So, I was thinking you and I could ditch for a bit. There’s a special going on at Veronica’s. Two burgers and hotties around every corner.”

Benny huffed; his body moved a little further away from his friend. “Sure, I can’t stand the sight of whatever’s got people going today.” He’d noticed an extra amount of snickering and gossip in the hallways that day and it made him boil on the inside.

Gabriel guffawed, “You didn’t hear? That Morgan kid got sent home. He had a whole panic attack in third period and his parents picked him up early.”

Benny stooped jogging and looked at Gabriel, who stopped just a couple steps ahead of him. He looked at Benny, nose scrunched up and eyes questioning.

“Why’d you fuck with him so badly this morning?”

“The big clutz bumped into me! I dropped my whole protein bar!”

Benny crossed his arms and an air of displeasure surrounded him like a thick fog. “So, you busted his lip over a protein bar?”

“Hey, you know just as well as I do how important it is to get bulked for the season.”

“We run track! Not engage in guerilla warfare, Gabe!”

Gabriel crossed his arms and knitted his eyebrows together. “You’re going soft again, Benny-boy.”

Benny relaxed his posture and took a deep breath to steady himself. He could see the rest of the team heading to the locker room and lowered his voice. If he could just start making his way to the building, he’d be home free from the situation at hand. “I’m just saying you were a little harsh. You act like it was on purpose.”

He was answered with a scoff.

Benny shook his head, trying to get his mind to clear and out of trouble. Gabriel had a way with words and if Benny didn’t want to be wash someone else’s blood of his knuckles, he should really shut up.

His friend walked closer and closer until Benny was going cross-eyed and Gabriel stood above him. “Watch your tone, Weir. Wouldn’t want to have to get a little rough today, would we?”

Benny dropped his gaze to his feet and swallowed thickly. His heart was racing again, fear rather than anger coursing through his veins. He shook his head, knowing his voice would only be carried away by the wind.

“Now suck it up and slap on a smile, before I give you something to be mad about.”

Benny clenched his fists and then relaxed them again. He resisted the urge to tap his foot and nodded. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

Gabriel smiled and slung an arm around Benny’s neck. “Atta boy! I knew you’d see it my way.”

Benny forced a smile. A feeling in his gut made the room spin a bit. It was September now and graduation was in June. He was counting down the days to freedom. Two hundred and fifty-eight days to go.

Gabriel pulled away and walked backwards to the school, “See ya at lunch! You’re footing the bill this time, bud!”


	4. I Think We're Alone Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I finished this chapter a little bit earlier than I thought. I've revised it three times and I'm still not completely happy with it, but, here you go! I hope you all enjoy! Reviews are great and encouraged :)

“I just wanted you to love me,” the TV was blaring in the living room as Ethan’s mom watched her nightly soap operas. Dinner had just ended for the Morgan family and everyone was spread out through the house.

Ethan was scrubbing left over baked macaroni off the plate in his hands. His lip still stung when he ran his tongue over it, a reminder of his break down in Mrs. Hannon’s class the day before. His mom had fretted over the wound and the taste of disinfectant was still a prominent taste on his tongue. He’d gotten way too tense from all of they eyes on him that day, leaving him in tears and unable to pick up his head from the desk when his teacher had asked him to.

Looking out of the little window above the sink, Ethan could make out the figure of Mrs. Weir swinging on her front porch swing between the rose bushes that separated their yards. She was a sweet old woman that always waved with a smile when he walked up his steps from school. He didn’t know how Benny, who kept his status quo in check while also keeping his head down, was raised by such a sweet person.

“Rosalinda!” Ethan glanced over to where his mother was sitting quite literally on the edge of her seat. She’d mentioned something about having the Weirs over for dinner. Apparently, Benny’s dad was visiting from Japan in a couple days and his mom wanted to do something nice for them since they’d always been good neighbors.

Ethan’s heart gave a little clench at the thought of Benny in his home. The only place he had left to just be himself. It disturbed him to think of what the jock would do to his house. How he’d probably laugh at the markings his dad had made on the banister by the front door, marking his and Jane’s height as they grew up. Or he’d somehow get into his room and destroy everything Ethan owned.

He looked back out of the window in time to catch the green eyes of Benny’s. His skeleton might as well have melted from fear. Rushing to wash the rest of the dishes, Ethan didn’t dare look back up. From the other side of window, Benny handed his grandma her iced tea and tried to ignore the hurt he felt from Ethan’s reaction to him.

* * *

It was almost three in the morning when Ethan was woken by the sound of a piano playing softly. He groggily opened his eyes and turned his head to the source.

His window was left open before he fell asleep for some fresh air that night. It seemed he wasn’t the only one with the idea. Benny’s window was cracked open slightly and Ethan squinted. There was a soft glow from a lamp – the kind where the light bulb was always two seconds away from going out – lighting the whole room a soft brown color. In the shadows, Benny was sitting at his piano, rocking back and forth to his own music and the creaks from the chair adding its own life to the music.

Ethan laid on his back and stared up at his ceiling, letting the music drift lazily around him. He could feel the emotion coming from the dark chords, his chest tightening with the sadness and relaxing with the lulls. He’d known Benny could play the piano, hearing it the few times Benny’s girlfriend was over and love songs were played. Now that he thought about it, it’d been awhile since he’d seen her at Benny’s house. Maybe they just hang out in the living room, Ethan reasoned.

The song switched to another and Ethan couldn’t help but think about the situations he had landed himself in.

Before Sarah had gone to college, Ethan really never had a reason to feel alone. She was his best friend. Someone to listen to his thoughts when they kept him awake at night. She’d helped him get over his fear of the unknown and, more embarrassingly, rats. Then, she just wasn’t there as much. His house, once filled with laughter and peace, was now a little colder with her gone. As if the thermostat was stuck at some barely freezing temperature and not even the thickest blanket could remedy it. He knew it was just him mind reeling from her presence being gone, but, nonetheless, it was a discomfort that he had to get accustomed to.

Across the way Benny slammed his hands down on the keys and Ethan jumped. Benny’s window slid shut and the light flickered off. A breath slipped past his lips and Ethan turned so his back was to the window. In two seconds, he slid back into a restless sleep, dreaming of Sarah coming home and graduation.

* * *

Ending up at the pep rally was one of the few great mysteries of Ethan’s teenaged life, but, there he was, sitting on the bleachers a few rows away from the top. Cheerleaders spun dizzying cartwheels before him, streamers of red and white with blonde pigtails and too much bronzer. He snorted to himself, looking around to make sure no one heard it. The audience roared as the cheer ended; Ethan even found it in himself to clap as well.

Coach Stevens took the microphone and started some kind of speech that Ethan guessed would motivate anyone with an IQ lower than the number of Crayons in a box. His eyes drifted to the front of the crowd, watching Benny and his friends talk animatedly amongst themselves. He hadn’t seen the guy act so lively in a while and couldn’t help but wonder what had gotten into him. Benny snuck a kiss to Erica, and it made Ethan feel something funny in his chest. Never mind that, now it was like jealousy.

With a shake of his head, Ethan turned his attention back to Coach Stevens. Why was his brain so foggy? It wasn’t like a panic attack. He couldn’t let himself daydream. Pep rallies were like sitting in hot water too long. It felt nice but his skin was tingly in a reminder to not get too comfortable.

Ethan looked at the empty seat next to him and pictured Sarah sitting there with him. She’d always go all out with school spirit. The last pep rally they’d had together Sarah had dressed as an actual devil with red contacts and black lipstick. Ethan blushed when he thought about how the way her lips moved. He’d been entranced by them, sucked into a world where maybe they could belong to him.

Cold washed over him and Ethan gasped.

“Oops,” a girl giggled, her cup obviously tipped over his head and the sticky soda starting to soak into his jacket.

Ethan stood, his eyes wide and mouth agape. The student body turned and looked at Ethan, choruses of laughter erupting. His eyes swept the whole of the gym, pinpointing every face. Hannah Price had her hand over a grin, trying to seem sympathetic. Brock Turner was almost turning blue he was laughing so hard. Gabriel Angelo was bent over, clutching his stomach and pointing at Ethan as he laughed.

Benny Weir wasn’t laughing.

Ethan felt like an ant and the magnifying glass over him was starting to burn. He made a dash for the exit and tore the doors open. The halls were empty, banners with cheesy lines about the Devil’s victory over some rival school lined the walls along with signup sheets for various clubs and dramatic posters for the next musical the theater club was performing in a month.

Ethan kept running, past the lockers and doorways to classrooms. He could still hear the deafening echo of laughing in his head, like it was implanted in his brain. Who had invited him to the pep rally again? Why’d he say yes?

He thought about how Hannah Price had asked him just to participate for once and Ethan had for some reason – maybe trying to get enough courage to finish out the year – had agreed.

Stupid, Ethan thought as he slammed his back against the wall of the black box room in the drama department. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

He slid down to the floor. Everybody was most likely getting chewed out by the principal, so Ethan had a few moments to wail as loud as he wanted, only the masks from the Vincent Van Gogh play to watch over him. The heels of his palm dug into his eyes and Ethan could see the flashes of light pop into focus. His head felt fuzzy from not enough air getting into his lungs. His chest heaved, making Ethan feel like he was going to puke all over the floor and his shoes.

Footsteps echoes in the hallway, drawing closer and closer to the little room that Ethan had holed up in. Great, someone else to make Ethan even more miserable.

“Uh, hey?”

Ethan looked up at the person. Benny stood in the doorway, looking disheveled. His posture was slightly slouched, and his feet were turned slightly inward. Ethan could remember a psychology text he once read meant that it was a guarded stance. Like a prey hiding from a predator.

Benny looked behind him, making sure the coast was clear before he shut the door quietly and wedged a chair under the chair. Better safe than sorry.

Ethan watched him and hung his head, ready for Benny to beat on him just as he did on Harley freshman year. At least he’d probably have memory issues and then he could forget about his humiliation.

But it never came. To his surprise, Benny took a seat next to him, his long legs folding up to his chest and fingers locking together, almost as if he was nervous. Ethan stared at him for a moment; Benny pretended not to notice. The silence was roaring in his ears, forcing Ethan to speak up or forever go deaf.

“What do you want?” Benny looked at him in surprise and, was that hurt?

“I just wanted to check on you.” Benny looked back down to his fingers and softly scuffed his sneakers together. This Benny reminded him of the geek that had posters lining the inside of his locker, who shouted happily every time someone acknowledged his obscure references. “Look, I know you don’t know me really well. I couldn’t let you run off and not know what was gonna happen to you. God, if you...”

Benny trailed off with a faraway look and Ethan could guess what the rest of the sentence was supposed to say. He shook his head, “I’m not that type of person.” Ethan prided himself on being strong enough to not go as far as to hurt himself. He got enough of that in school.

Benny smiled softly and picked at his fingernails. Ethan noticed they were bitten to the quick, some even an angry red color. “That’s a bad habit, by the way.”

“Yeah, but how else am I supposed to get my quick fix?” Benny bit his finger and pretended to pass out like a drug addict. Ethan smiled on reflex before he schooled his expression.

Benny’s smile faded and was back to staring at the dirt on his shoes. Ethan had a nice smile, he thought to himself before he could catch it.

“You don’t have to stay here with me. Won’t your posse be looking for you soon?”

Benny felt a rise of anger bubble up in his chest. He’d shoved Gabriel and Erica off of him after Ethan basically flew out of the doors, a strange déjà vu to a week ago when Ethan had run out of the front doors of the school. Even with his track experience, Benny had struggled to keep up with the smaller kid, losing him at a few twists and turns until he’d heard the heart breaking sobs coming from the black box. He was sure his friend were looking for him and Benny had forgotten his phone on one of the seats in the gym – on purpose, if he so might add.

“Yeah, probably.” Benny shifted uncomfortably on the concrete floor, letting his legs stretch out and his head making a hollow sound as he dropped it back against the wall.

They both were quiet for a long time. Ethan itched to call Sarah and tell her everything. Benny just wanted to wrap his arms around Ethan and just hold him there. It reminded him of how he’d first felt with Erica, but this was different right? They were both boys and Benny didn’t even really know Ethan. To be fair, he hadn’t really known Erica either, just focused on how her clothes hugged her frame tightly and the way she made him feel at first.

The bell rang around them but neither boy moved an inch. They could hear the tell-tale crash and voices of students making their way to class. Ethan sighed and cracked his back, turning red at how loud it was in the room.

Benny smiled, “Wanna see something cool?”  
  


Ethan looked over at him in curiosity.

Benny bent his thumb and touched the back of his wrist, letting it go again so it could spring back into place. His face cracked into a cheshire grin, nose scrunched up and eyebrows furrowed together. Ethan made a disgusted face before giving a smile as well. “That’s the grossest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Benny held his hands up in mock defense. “Hey, I take offense to that.”

Ethan chuckled and shoved Benny playfully. He froze. He’d just pushed one of the most popular guys like he was his absolute best friend. Ethan closed his eyes and braced for a punch. Benny just mused his hair a bit and stood. He extended a hand out to Ethan.

The other boy looked up at him as if Benny had just offered him paraphernalia.

“Well? Do you want to get detention if they find us in here?”

Ethan shook his head and took Benny’s hand. It was rough but not like Ethan had imagined. There were strips of his fingers that were more calloused than others, but it wasn’t unpleasant. Benny helped him up and they held onto each other’s hand for a brief moment.

Ethan smiled awkwardly when Benny let go. “I’ll see you around, ‘kay?” He nodded at Benny and watched him leave. It would’ve been a nice moment if he wasn’t drenched in cherry coke. Ethan rolled his eyes and made his way to his locker to find spare clothes.

* * *

Benny’s teammates were crowded around their lunch table, bickering about something to do with the hockey game that night. Benny let Erica’s hands run over his shoulders. Her sharp nails scraped against his neck every ten seconds. It reminded him of what talons felt like, though Benny didn’t want to think about that.

Gabriel slapped the table as he laughed with the others. “I could so get on the team if I tried!”

Benny chuckled, “Don’t you remember the time we played together on the rink? You were so scared I was gonna hit you with the puck!”

Gabriel laughed louder, “You got me there!”

The green-eyed teen laughed with him; Erica leaned her head on his shoulder. As the conversation switched, Ethan passed by the table in deep discussion with Rory. They locked gazes for a second and suddenly Erica’s hands felt too tight around him. She kissed his cheek and Ethan looked away. Benny tore his eyes away and gave Erica a little smile, kissing back when she made the first move. Why did it make him feel gross?


	5. Good Grief

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again! This chapter is longer than those previous! We see some more Benny and Ethan interaction and even a bit of Benny's dad in this one. Reviews are encouraged and appreciated! :)

Breathe.

Benny sprinted as fast as his legs would take him. His neighborhood was quiet in the early morning glow. The leaves were just now starting to turn to colors signaling the return of fall. It was his favorite season – if only Christmas were in the fall, his mind added sadly. When the air bit at exposed skin and the ground would be drenched in reds and oranges. Halloween was around the corner and Benny had been prepping his costume since last Halloween had ended. Vampires were really cliché but a vampire zombie? It was a mind explosion!

His legs took him past his house again and he waved to his grandma who was out front pruning her bushes. She gave him a wave back before focusing on a particularly stubborn branch.

Evelyn Weir watched her grandson continue on his way down the street once he passed, jogging and dodging people walking past. She had watched that boy grow up from a small infant to the tall, lanky teen that he turned out to be. She’d seen every heartbreak, every victory and every life upgrade he’d been through. He was more of her son than anything and she was proud of the man he had the prospects to be.

But it didn’t come without the downsides. She’d seen friends come and go for him. Some good, some bad. It was only recently that she’d taken the heavy displeasure in meeting Gabriel. That kid did nothing but tell Benny how they had to be good together. How Benny had to follow his footsteps and only to agree to his way. She’d been to the school for discipline visits way more in the past two years than she had ever been for her own son. It was always the two of them. Benny and Gabriel, sitting next to each other. One guilty and the other joyful.

Oh, how she despised that kid.

“Good morning, Evelyn.” Samantha Morgan greeted her with a cheery smile.

Evelyn smiled back and set down her garden sheers, “Good morning, Sam. You look chipper today.”

Samantha nodded, her blond hair bobbing. “Jane is getting awarded her new badges at the Mole Troop party tonight and I am so beyond proud of her. She’s worked so hard this year!”

“That’s wonderful news,” Evelyn clasped her hands together. “Jane is such a good girl.”

“Well we can’t thank you enough. You and Benny are still our biggest buyers when Mole-O season rolls around.” Samantha chuckled.

Ethan walked out of the front door and gave his mother a wave. “Where’s your boy off to so early in the morning?”

Samantha watched her son walk to the car that had pulled up next to the sidewalk. Sarah waved happily at her from the driver’s seat. She waved back and watched them speed away. “He made plans with Sarah, finally. I haven’t seen him look so excited in so long.”

Evelyn faked a smile and glanced back at the car. It rolled to a stop next to the stop sign where Benny was catching his breath, pretending to check his phone. She could see him look over at the car and double take at the passengers. Ethan must’ve waved at him because Benny held up a hand, his head following the car as it continued down the road. His shoulders dropped and Benny took off in a mad dash again. He’d talked about meeting Ethan the day before and, even as a woman who’s lived through the victory celebrations of World War II, she’s never seen someone so head over heels. If only Benny knew.

“So, I was thinking, since Benny’s father is coming home tonight, that you’d finally let us treat you to dinner tonight?”

Evelyn looked back over at the blonde. David was coming home for the night to do his annual checkup on her and Benny before he flew back to whatever new home he had lined up. She tried not to let the disappointment leak into her faux happiness. “That’d be nice. It is Benny’s turn to cook tonight.” She pursed her lips at the thought of the last time he cooked. She was still finding bits of meat in the corners of her kitchen. “We’ll be there.”

“Great!” Samantha beamed, hopping on her toes a bit. “Let’s say around ten tonight?”

Evelyn agreed, Samantha retreating back into her home as Benny flew past the front lawn, not even sparing a glance at his grandma.

* * *

“So, did they figure out who spilled all that soda on you?”

Ethan rolled his eyes at Sarah and took a bite of his eggs. They’d gone for breakfast and Ethan had recounted his embarrassing encounter at the pep rally. He’d left out the bit about Benny, opting to tell her that another time.

“No, and I’m not a snitch so it’s classified.”

Sarah backed off a bit and stabbed her strawberry-soaked pancakes. “Just say the word and I’ll pull her hair out.”

Ethan choked on his piece of bacon, “It wasn’t that serious. Honestly, I’m okay.”

Sarah nodded and dropped the subject. “What was that back in the car anyways?”

Ethan raised an eyebrow.

“You waved at Benny Weir. I thought he was an untouchable.”

Ethan let his laugh out through his nose, sipping his orange juice before clearing his throat. “I dunno. I’ve just been trying to be nicer.” He’d really hoped she hadn’t caught the interaction but with the way Benny was staring, it was a wonder she hadn’t asked sooner.

Sarah gave him a look. “And he deserves that because?” She waved her fork around, strawberry sauce dripping onto the table between them.

He shrugged and took a bite of his waffle, syrup coating his lips. The cut on his lower lip was finally scabbed over; Sarah had almost ripped it back open trying to assess the damage in the car. Swallowing the waffle, Ethan looked back up at her, “He’s not actually a bad guy.”

“There’s still blood stains on the floor where he almost murdered that kid!”

Ethan winced, remembering it all over again. He hadn’t known Benny to ever get violent. But then again, he didn’t really know the guy. Maybe he had some dark side that Ethan had only seen at that moment. “Yeah, true.”

Sarah put down her fork and laid her hand on top of his. Ethan tried not to look confused when the usual butterflies he’d get in his stomach were dormant.

“I just don’t want you to end up in something I can’t pull you out of, Ethan.”

He slid his hand away, rubbing the lingering feeling underneath the table with his thumb. “I know, I know. I wasn’t thinking straight.”

Sarah frowned, picking her fork back up and stealing a piece of Ethan’s hash browns. “Besides, the guy has the personality of a wet mop. He used to hit on me with those goons of his.”

Ethan felt his chest go hollow but shook the feeling away, digging back into his waffle. “Food for thought,” Sarah shrugged as they continued with breakfast.

After paying for their food and leaving a tip, the two found themselves at the park, swinging next to each other and laughing about nothing other than the weird squeaks the metal made after not being used for a while. Ethan zipped up his coat. September was drawing to a close around them and the last bit of warmth that the sun had brought was covered by the overcast clouds above.

“I was thinking we could have a sleepover tonight. Oh, and finally watch that horror movie I showed you!” Sarah pushed her legs forward a little harder, going higher and higher on the swing – the metal was almost drowning out their voices but the feeling of the harsh air combing her hair was worth it.

“As if! I read that its cursed!” Ethan let his upper body dip backward, watching the ground slide past him before the sky came back into view.

“So what? A little spooky action couldn’t hurt anyone!”

“I’m not trying to get dragged to Hell, Sarah! I’ve got a math test on Tuesday!”

Sarah laughed loudly and Ethan smiled.

“I missed you a lot, you know?”

Their eyes met as they breezed past each other, their speed and height starting to decrease as they stopped moving their legs. If Ethan took a big enough breath, he could smell the flowery scent of Sarah’s perfume and the strawberries on her breath. “I missed you, too.”

They gradually came to a stop and Sarah reached her hand out. Ethan took it in his with a shiver, both from the cold and from how her hand felt in his.

“We should probably head home soon. It looks like its gonna rain.”

“Hey, Sarah?”

She looked at him, tearing her eyes away from the clouds. Ethan bit his lip, ignoring the jolt of pain. His dad’s voice rung in his head, giving encouraging advice. His nerves were singing, and his heart pounded painfully in his chest.

“Do you want to go out sometime? Like…like on a date?”

Sarah stared at him for a moment with an unreadable expression. If he could, Ethan would’ve kicked himself in the face.

“Yes.”

Ethan looked up at her with wide brown eyes. Sarah laughed quietly and squeezed Ethan’s hand. Her boots knocked together quietly, bringing Ethan back to reality. A smile stretched across his face. He stood and wrapped her up into a big hug. They separated with red faces.

Rain started to fall, and Sarah yelped before she took off running to the car. Ethan followed closely, a lovesick smile never leaving his face.

Sarah dropped him off at his house after they left the park, excusing herself to go spend some time with her family before coming back to spend the night with Ethan. He waved at her from the porch as she sped off. Upon entering his house, Ethan leaned against the door and breathed out a quiet laugh. Sarah actually said yes. Sarah actually said yes!

Ethan punched the air and danced stupidly in place.

“Woah, bud! Did the Star Wars convention finally announce the costume contest winners?” His dad chuckled.

Ethan bounced excitedly over to him, grabbing his arms excitedly. “I asked her, dad!” His dad looked confused for a second. “I asked her, and she said yes!”

A smile formed on his dad’s face almost instantly. He ignored the jolt of pain from his dad slapping his back, “Good job, son. I’m proud of you.”

A smile danced across Ethan’s face again and he looked up at his dad, ‘Thank you for encouraging me, by the way. I never would’ve done it without your advice.”

His dad felt pride swell in his chest, squeezing his Ethan’s shoulder. “Good on you, buddy. I knew you had it in you.” Ethan let out a happy breath, “But, hey, we have guests coming over soon. Go freshen up and change. Your mom’s going crazy trying to make everything perfect.”

Ethan nodded and dashed up the stairs, his dad watching him proudly.

* * *

Ten o’clock rolled around by the time dinner was made and everyone was gathered around the staircase as they waited for their guests.

Ethan was chatting happily with Sarah who had come to the Morgan’s dressed in her Sunday best, informed by Ethan that there was some dinner party going on at his house. Samantha was fixing Ross’s tie, brushing off imaginary dust on his dress shirt then leaning down to straighten Jane’s pigtails. A knock on the door caught everyone’s attention and Samantha shooed them all away to the living room while she opened the door.

Once the door open, Samantha greeted the Weirs with a smile. Evelyn walked in wearing a soft white pant suit. Blue sequin hummingbirds on her suit flashed in the light and her lips were tinted with a dark red lipstick. Behind her, Benny’s father emerged. His brown hair was slicked back professionally, and he wore a grey suit with a maroon shirt underneath. He radiated confidence and suave, but the bags and forehead wrinkles above his bushy eyebrows told a different story. Benny trailed in afterwards, a nervous look in his green eyes. He wore a nice button up with skinny jeans and dressy shoes. A chocolate cake was clutched in his hands, decorated with vanilla swirls and whipped cream.

Ethan took a deep breath to calm the nerves. He felt Sarah slip her hands into his behind their backs, looking at him as she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze.

“Well, you all know each other.” Samantha held her hands out to welcome them to the living room. “Let’s not be strangers.”

Ross and David gave each other a firm handshake, beginning to talk about some hockey league drama they’d recently been watching unfold. Evelyn sat with Samantha on the couch, chit-chatting about their gardens and the weather. Jane ran to Sarah and begged her to play games while they waited for everyone to settle in and dinner to be served. Ethan chuckled at his little sister and went to follow them, but Benny standing nervously in the corner caught his eye.

He was trying and failing to blend into the background, sweating as if the lights above were purposely trying to burn him alive. Ethan took a moment to look him over, hoping Benny wouldn’t notice. He’d never noticed how skinny Benny was. The shirt he was wearing was tight around his waist, accentuating his wait and tucked into his pants. The sleeves were neatly pushed up and the collar was opened slightly. Ethan’s eyes drifted down to his legs, and Ethan once again ignored the bolt of electricity he felt when looking at Benny. He wasn’t above average or extraordinary in any way, but there was something about him that was appealing. A piece of Ethan’s mind whispered attractive, but Ethan decided not to acknowledge it.

Taking the room in a couple steps, Ethan walked up to Benny and offered his hands out for the cake. Benny smiled at him, some form of ice that Ethan hadn’t notice melting off of him. “Thanks for the dessert. Mom burned the muffins she had planned, so…yeah.” Benny handed the cake to Ethan. He’d almost forgotten about the cake in his hands. He wasn’t the most comfortable in new spaces.

Benny chuckled softly and shifted his feet, looking down. “Yeah, uhm, grandma wouldn’t let me leave without it in my hands.”

Ethan led him to the kitchen and set the cake on the island. Benny, not knowing what to do, followed and looked around at the décor of the house. Next to the fridge was a giant chalkboard with random writing scribbled all over the surface. ‘Dr’s appointment Friday @ 2 Ross’, ‘Need more flour’, ‘plz tak out trash’, and ‘Ethan stinks Jane RULES’ were some of the few little notes. Ethan glanced over to the board and tried to hide the messages with his body. “So…”

Benny licked his lips and Ethan fought a shiver going up his spine. “If you wanna go back to the living room, that’s cool. I know Sarah’s here, so...”

“You could come with me?”

Benny laughed softly and dropped his gaze down to the floor, not wanting Ethan to see him bite his lip. “I don’t think Sarah likes me very much.”

“No! She-She, uh…”

The other boy nodded sullenly, “I’ll be good here by myself for a bit.” Ethan clinched his fists and relaxed them again. He shifted awkward. Was Benny trying to give him an out to having to spend time with him? What happened to the cool, charismatic jock?

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”

Ethan gave him an unimpressed look and Benny sighed, “Just some stuff on my mind, okay? I’m not always in meathead mode.”

“Penny for your thoughts?”

“It’s nothing. Teenage angst and all that good stuff.” Ethan nodded and let the subject go.

The two stood in their spots for a moment. It was what Ethan guessed was supposed to be awkward silence but, for some, reason Benny brought a wave of calm with him no matter how much he fidgeted or picked at his nails.

Sarah walked into the kitchen, slowing down when she seen Ethan looking at his feet and Benny leaning against the counter with his chin resting on his arms. She looked between them and felt a little bit of anger boil under her skin, but Ethan looked unharmed from where he was leaning against the message board on the wall. She decided to ignore the taller boy and went to Ethan’s side, gently wrapping her hands around Ethan’s arm.

“Your mom said its time for dinner. Let’s go sit down.”

Ethan gapped at her for a second. His mind had been so focused on Benny, he’d forgotten what was going on. He eventually nodded and shot a look at Benny, but he wasn’t there anymore. “Yeah, let’s-let’s go.”

Sarah led him to the dining room. Benny’s father had his arm around his son’s shoulders and Benny stood uncomfortable underneath him, his hands shoved in his pockets and a wide grin on his face. He was almost an exact copy of his father; he had the same bushy eyebrows, soft brown hair and giant grin. His green eyes were his uniqueness, though. Ethan had never been close enough to admire them before this week, but now that he had, he couldn’t get the color of them out of his head.

They all took a seat. Benny next to his father and grandma. Ethan smooshed between Sarah and his little sister.

Dinner was served without a hitch. David asked Ethan about school between bites of turkey, citing that it was his and Benny’s senior year. Ethan nodded and brushed the conversation aside politely. Ross mentioned Benny getting a track scholarship and Benny preened with pride beside his father, wanting wholly for his father to be proud of him. Ethan snuck a glance at Sarah who grabbed his hand again under the table and smiled.

“How’s college life, Sarah?” Samantha asked, all attention turning to Sarah. “Any fights with the roommate yet?”

Sarah perked up. “It’s great! My roommate really doesn’t stay in the dorm so it’s like having a whole room to myself.”

Ethan took a huge bite of mashed potatoes, “Ethan told me you two made plans to go out.” He spit out his mashed potatoes and looked at his dad with wide eyes, cheeks aflame.

“Dad!”

“What?” Ross smiled genuinely, leaning back in his chair and letting his hand rest on the back of his wife’s chair. “It’s good news. You kids have been good friends for a long time!”

Sarah smiled at him, “Yeah, I think it’s time to see where it goes.”

If it had been a normal situation Ethan would’ve felt like he was on cloud nine. Instead, his eyes instinctively went to Benny’s. He was sat shock-still in his chair. Staring directly at Ethan. Ethan looked down at his plate; something was swimming in his gut. When he looked back up again, Benny was pushing his food around, refusing to meet his eyes.

Benny’s grandma stood to get the cake, but Benny gently stopped her, saying he’d grab it for them. Ethan watched him go, jaw stiffening.

“David, where are you headed next?”

Benny braced himself against the kitchen island and took a deep breath. Why was he so out of it tonight? Usually he had the cool as a cucumber personality that he’d practiced so hard to get good at down to a tee. But it was like he’d taken one look at Ethan and the whole thing turned to nonsense in his head and the personality he’d squashed down and put a tight lid over wanted to resurface with a vengeance.

“You okay, son?”

Benny looked over at his father and nodded, grabbing the cake. “Yeah, sorry. I’m just full.”

“I’m so proud of you. Look at the man you’ve become, Benjamin.” His dad pulled him into an awkward hug. Benny had to hug back to make sure not to squish the cake between them. “You’ve got big things coming for you. Your mom would be so proud.”

Benny pulled away, looking up to catch the tears that welled to the surface before they fell. “You think?”

“Of course, Ben. She would always say you were her ‘little magic boy’,” his dad chuckled. Benny thought back to fifth grade when he’d stopped pretending to be The Amazing Ben Wizard after the kids in his class made fun of him. Guilt washed over him when he remembered how disappointed his mother looked when he’d told her.

“Let’s get back. They’re probably waiting for us.”

“Wait for a second,” Benny huffed in frustration and turned back to face his father. “Listen, I know how easy it is to get mixed in with the wrong crowd, Benjamin. I had my teenage rebellion phase, too.”

Benny shifted his feet awkwardly. The walls were getting kind of close, weren’t they? He hadn’t talked this much to his father since he started traveling.

“Your grandmother told me about this Gabriel guy and all of the trouble you’ve been causing. I know I’m not around much but I’m still your dad. If you keep up the behavior, you’ll be coming with me. Got it?”

“Yes, sir.” His chest hurt from forcing himself to breathe normally.

“Good, let’s go.”

Benny followed and sat back down at the table, hoping no one could tell how much he was panicking on the inside.


	6. The First Punch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! This chapter has been so hard for me to get just right and I think it's on version four or five, somewhere around there anyways. We have a very Benny-centric chapter this time around. This chapter includes is a big step for Benny and he even acknowledges some thoughts that he probably shouldn't. Hope you guys enjoys! Reviews are appreciated and encouraged! :)

Benny was sprawled out of the floor of his room, watching the ceiling fan spin and occasionally lifting his hand to feed himself Skittles. Erica was sat on his bed and singing along to some pop song that annoyed Benny to no end. He’d initially planned on being alone but Erica had a way with blowing up his phone that made Benny _so_ eager to let her come over

“We could totally be at Della’s house, partying the night away. Why are we just sat here in your room?”

Benny dumped a hand full of Skittles in his mouth, entertained by the sound they made bouncing off his teeth. “I don’t wanna go to Della’s.” Erica was always trying to make some kind of plans for parties and nights out on the town. Benny couldn’t give any more of a crap about going out, though Benny had given some effort in trying for her. He’d suggested a movie or a walk in the park, but Erica had found a way to try to include everyone they knew. That was the least of Benny’s problems, though.

Erica groaned and threw her phone in his direction. Benny sat up lazily and quirked an eyebrow at her. “Why do we always have to hang out in public?”

Erica crossed her arms, “How’s anybody supposed to know we look hot together if we’re not at every party we can get into?” Ah, so that’s why.

Benny rolled his eyes and lowered back onto the ground, “Right.” Skittles clattered noisily against his teeth as Erica watched him disappear.

“You know, I think I heard the front door.” Erica bent over the edge of the bed with a look in her eyes that made Benny feel gross on the inside. Benny looked disinterested at how her cleavage hung in her shirt, she’d obviously wanted it in full view for him. “Maybe we can get a little PG13 in here?”

Benny laughed and closed his eyes, “Grandma wouldn’t dare leave. Even if she did, I’m pretty sure she’s got cameras in every room.” There was a sneaking suspicion that the book about astrology she’d gifted him was fitted with a camera, but he didn’t really want to give the effort to investigate.

“Who cares?” Erica pulled herself off of his bed and slunk down to lay on top of him. Benny just laid there, keeping his eyes closed. It was no use trying to get her to stop. She’d been basically throwing herself into his lap at every opportunity and if it only took one time to cave into her demands, then that’s just what he had to put up with. “You’ve been so distracted lately. I could help with that you know.” Benny could hear her fingers brush the carpet as she dragged her fingers across it to get to his hips.

Benny sighed through his nose and opened his eyes to meet her blue eyes. The smell of some cinnamon and spice perfume filled his nostrils at how close she was to him. Once upon a time, Erica had been the hottest thing he’d ever seen. Tall, shapely and blonde had been Benny’s type at the time and Gabriel had more than pushed Benny at her. He’d taken a risk and figured out later on that it wasn’t worth it.

She raised one perfectly plucked eyebrow and he closed his eyes again. “Whatever.”

Erica took it as an ‘okay’ and slunk down low. Benny tuned out and looked over at his window. The world was upside down since his head was tilted back to look but he wanted nothing but to focus and daydream. He thought of the window beyond his curtains and the boy who was on a date with Sarah at that very second. What if they were kissing at the second? His cheeks flushed at the idea of Ethan kissing anyone. He wondered how it would feel. Benny shook his head. No, bad thoughts.

He thought about how unfair people were to Ethan at school. He’d barely breezed by himself at first until he started gaining popularity, but Ethan was at the brunt of every other joke and had a collection of both mental and physical scars from the way people treated him. It made Benny incredibly angry to think that people hated him for no other reason than being was an easy target.

They hadn’t spoken much after the dinner a couple days ago and it made Benny feel beyond sad. He’d seen Ethan in the halls, ducking past them to avoid Gabriel and coincidentally Benny as well. The boy would wave secretly from his locker - which was a couple feet away from Benny’s - and Benny would wave back, making a stupid face just to make Ethan smile. They’d had a small conversation in the empty halls when they had bumped into each other, on the way to separate locations. Benny wished they could talk more than what was socially accepted. Gabriel didn’t like the ‘intermingling of social classes’ as he told Benny. But there was no way Benny would give up seeing Ethan’s smile.

God, he could think about that guy’s smile all day. Straight white teeth and a laugh that Benny could get lost in. Teeth that Benny wouldn’t mind having-

“Ow!” Benny jolted. “Teeth, Erica, teeth!”

“Sorry,” she mumbled, and Benny laid his head back down.

His attention went to the ceiling fan. When had he let everything start spiraling? He remembered his teammates giving him grief at first. They’d poked fun at his striped shirt and pulled his pants down when they realized he wore two sizes too big for his frame. Benny had cried to his grandma to help him fund a new wardrobe, but with the limited budget they’d been on her answer was always ‘no’. She’d relented after she was called to the school; Benny had sucker punched one of the guys after he’d had enough. His gaze went to the box under his bed that contained those shirts. He was sure they’d still fit him if he were to ever try them on.

‘No more ugly sweaters and stripes.’ Gabriel had said to him once when Benny had mentioned bringing out some of the clothes. ‘We’re not traffic cones, and we sure as hell don’t dress like them.’ When had he let people tell him how to dress? Gabriel was his friend, right? So, why did it feel like everyone was out to get him? When he was younger, Benny had imagined fighting monsters and having close friends to fight them with him. And now, it felt as if the monsters had disguised himself as friends and were waiting for the moment to pounce.

His phone rang and Benny pushed Erica off of him. She pouted but relented. “Hello?”

“Hey!” Benny looked over at Erica as Gabriel’s voice assaulted his ear. “Yo, so I know you don’t want to be out and all, but this party is killer! You’re missing so much!”

Benny looked at his fingernails, “That’s great, man, but I’m on lockdown. No one over and nowhere to go. Grandma’s been talking to my dad and if I toe the line, it’s good-bye Benny.”

Erica gasped and pushed Benny’s shoulder. He winced. Oh right, she was there.

“Who’s that?”

Erica grabbed the phone and Benny rolled his eyes, leaning back on his hands. “Hey, Gabe! We’ll totally be there!” His hands started shaking as she continued to make plans. Who did she think she was?

He heard Gabriel and some other guy cheer before they said their good-byes. He set a hard glare on Erica and she smiled sweetly at him, “What? What did I do wrong, baby?”

Benny stood and pocketed his phone. He straightened his shirt and walked over to his door, opening it and staring at Erica. “Get out.”

Normally, Benny was pretty laid back and had no problem letting the problems happen and dealing with them in the moment. He had always been the type of person to do now and think about it later. But, with the thought of his grandma finding out and reporting it back to his father, Benny wasn’t taking chances.

Erica backtracked, a look on her face as if he’d slapped her. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me. Get out.”

“You can’t kick me out! I’m your girlfriend.” Did she really think that was going to have any effect on him?

Benny tilted his head side to side slowly, as if in deep thought, “Mm, yes I can,” he deadpanned, gesturing with his head for her to leave.

Erica crossed her arms and turned up her nose, “I’m not leaving unless it’s to go to the party.”

“I’m not going Erica.”

“Come on! We’ll be back before anyone notices!”

“Not happening. I let you in ‘cause you kept crying about how we never spend any time together.” Erica nodded hurriedly. “But! I am not going to let you force me to go to some party just because you want to go to next base! Did you not hear what I told Gabe?”

“So, you’re scared of your daddy?” She teased with a smirk.

“I’m not trying to get dragged to some corner of the world! Why can’t you just, for once – for fucking once – listen to me?” His body was quivering, and he could feel tears in his eyes. “I don’t want to be in public twenty-four seven! I would just like to have a few fucking hours by myself without you or Gabriel bitching at me to come drink myself into a goddamn coma! Get out of my house, dammit!”

Benny gritted his teeth and tightened his hold on the door knob. Erica stood up and shrugged on her purse. Her demeanor had shifted, causing the air in the room to feel as thick as swimming through Jell-O. She glared at Benny, “Before you met me, you were at every party, flirting with every girl. Where’s that guy? That’s the one I was attracted to! Not some square who can’t even get it up half of the time.”

Benny chuckled, “Oh, I can. Just not for you.” He covered his mouth quickly. That wasn’t supposed to come out.

Erica visibly reeled back, “For who, then? Are you cheating on me?”

Benny shook his head, dropping his hands. “You only wish I was. I can do better than some knock-off Barbie horndog.” He might as well go all out. If he was being honest, it felt good in a sick way to let all of his pent up anger out.

She stomped up to Benny and grabbed his face in her hand, her nails digging painfully into his cheek. “I’ll find out who it is, so tell me now. Who is she?”

“I told you. I’m not cheating on you.”

Erica let out a yell in anger and scratched his cheek. Benny’s head jerked a little at the force and his eyes were wide. Erica stomped down the stairs and Benny could hear her smash something downstairs before she slammed the door behind her. His cheek stung and Benny shut the door. He stumbled to the edge of his bed. He missed it by a couple centimeters and landed on the floor with a thud. He stared at the wall for a second before he let out a laugh, pain and relief tasting weird on his tongue.

His phone buzzed. ‘Ethan Morgan has requested to follow you.’

A smile broke out on his face, making him wince a little. The screen faded to black and Benny looked at his reflection. Tired eyes stared back. On his cheek were three ugly scratches from his ear and one ranging long enough to the corner of his mouth.

* * *

“Benny!” He caught the bag that his grandma had almost dropped when she entered the house. Her focus was solely on his face and he knew his goose was cooked the minute she pulled into the driveway. “What happened?”

The bag was set down on the table silently and Benny tried to tell himself that the throbbing would go away if he didn’t think about it. He gave her a smile and sat at the dining room table. His grandma gently brushed her fingers over the gashes, pulling away when he flinched.

“I think I just broke up with Erica.” Benny was confused as to why that didn’t make him feel anything. There were no tears or sadness like he’d figured would follow. Instead, Benny felt lighter as if she’s had some hold on him that made his body feel older than it actually was. His grandma said nothing about it.

“Let me clean it up for you. I’ve got some antiseptic in the bathroom.”

Benny stood, “No, it doesn’t hurt anymore. I’m going to go for a run, if that’s okay?”

“Sit down. You’re not going anywhere.” Benny plopped back down with a frown. “Now, if I come back and you’ve moved from that spot, I will not hesitate to call your father. He’s still close enough to come back for you, Benjamin.”

That was a scary thought. His dad had said something about a layover in New York the last time he’d heard him on the phone. The threat given to him had still been fresh on his mind at that point, still like a slap to the face as it had been when he’d heard it the first time. School that morning had been eventful what with having to explain to Gabriel that they needed to lay low for the rest of the year. His friend had groaned, citing that the Christmas party they’d been planning was supposed to be the best night of their lives. In the past, Benny would’ve fallen for the façade that Gabriel was looking out for his high school experience. But he knew now that it was only to have a partner in crime, really. Benny couldn’t afford to mess up; his plans for after graduation did not include tagging along with his dad on some business trip.

His grandma came back into the room with cotton balls and a bottle of anti-septic. She went to the drawer where he knew her first aid kit was stashed and hoped she wouldn’t have to stitch him up like that one time he’d caught his leg on a metal fence wire and almost split his leg in half. “Do I really need to be sewn up?”

She took his chin into his hand and turned his head to the side to examine the scratches. “No, they’re thin enough for bandages. Now explain.”

Benny rolled his eyes. “She wanted to go to some party, and I told her no.” The liquid touched his skin and Benny hissed in pain.

“And then?”

“She got all whiny, so I told her to go.” His hands were suddenly interesting as he thought about what he’d said. “I told her something that made her really mad and I got what I deserved is all.”

“I have half the mind to have her arrested for assault, Benny. She could’ve really hurt you.”

He pushed away from the table and his grandma, standing up. “If that’s the logic, then I should’ve been locked up years ago, grandma!”

“Don’t raise your voice at me, Benjamin Weir. You’re not too old for me to paddle you.”

He sighed and rubbed his hands against his face. “I’m sorry. It’s just…” He sat back down and let his head hit the table loudly. “I’ve done so many bad things without thinking about them and there’s this guilt that I-I don’t know how to get rid of. Why did I beat that kid up? Do you remember him? He doesn’t even walk in the same direction as me now. Why don’t I fight back for Ethan? I think we’re friends, so why don’t I stop Gabe?”

Hands gently massaged his back, “You really have gotten yourself into some situations, Benny. But, you’re a smart young man. I’m sure you can figure it out.”

“Isn’t this the part where you’re supposed to give me some kind of life-changing advice and then I go on a journey of self-discovery?”

She just laughed and took a seat next to him. “This is your life, Benjamin. There is no one inside your mind besides you and you make the decisions. Whatever happened, happened.” Benny turned his head to face her with tears burning his eyes like acid. “Whether you like it or not, there is no way to go back to the past to fix every mistake you’ve made. But, you do learn from your mistakes. Learn from them and make the best of your situations.”

Benny lifted on side of his mouth in a smile, “That made no sense.”

She smacked his shoulder, “You know what I’m trying to say. I haven’t had my night pills.”

Benny nodded and they spent the rest of the night watching hockey together. His grandma more so than he.

What could he do to fix anything he’d done? It was at times like this that Benny wished he had magical powers to snap the answer into reality. Maybe he could give a dying kid his last wish or feed the homeless. But Benny knew that wouldn’t help anything. He had to do something for the kids he’d hurt.

And maybe he could start with the one on the forefront of his mind.


	7. Rescue Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hello, hello! I'm excited for the next two chapters so I'm releasing them back to back since they basically play off of each other and they flow better when read one after another. I think. Anyways! Reviews are encouraged and appreciated! :)

Benny flinched when Gabriel pushed him against the lockers, “Do you know how uncool you’re being right now?”

This wasn’t his best moment. Multiple people had tried to touch his face all morning, Erica had knocked his much needed coffee out of his hands and, now, Gabriel was quite literally shouting in his ear. He was vaguely aware of the people that were sneaking glances and whispering to each other. It was cathartic almost, to remember just how it felt to be bullied.

“Now I’ve gotta figure out how to help you apologize to her! You guys were the literal power couple of the school!” Gabriel groaned, rubbing his face. Benny rubbed his shoulder, his face no longer hiding the anger and disgust on it. “Not to mention, you’ve been skipping out on practice and the scout comes _next_ Friday! What is going on with you, Ben?”

Benny took a steadying breath. He’d been practicing in the mirror all night, trying to find the right words to say. Yet, as he stared at Gabriel, the words were caught in his throat. It was like he was under some spell to lock his entire speech in his throat. He glanced around at the people surrounding them. The same anxiety that he had felt when freshman year had first started was back. God, it felt good to have emotions. But at the same time, Benny could feel the fear turning his blood to ice.

“Forget it.” Gabriel crossed his arms. “I’ve been way to lax with you. We’re supposed to be a team, man.”

“Why? So, you can boss us all around all day?” Benny stood taller, suddenly bursting with confidence. “I’m so over feeling like this. You’re like Darth Vader! But, this time I get to be Luke Skywalker and kick your ass.”

He was met with silence.

Then there was laughing. A lot of it. Gabriel was bent over by it and the students that had previously been quiet were roaring with it. “Oh, now I get it!” Gabriel grabbed his shoulders and gave him a shake. “You’ve been hanging out with the geek squad for too long!”

Benny looked around, confused. “What?”

“See, I figured all you needed was just a reminder. You don’t think I haven’t seen you and Morgan dilly-dallying around the halls.” Gabriel shrugged and smiled. “I thought it’d make you realize just how much of a loser you used to be, and you’d get some sense knocked into that big head of yours.”

Benny glared at him. “I’m not a loser.” Gabriel laughed but Benny cut him off. “Besides, I’d rather be friends with people who actually give a damn about my feelings!

“Oh, don’t be such a crybaby.” Gabriel tapped his cheek, making Benny flinch “I’m looking out for your future, bud. Without me, you’d be just like Morgan and his little sidekicks.”

“Hey, leave him alone!”

Benny’s head snapped to Ethan at his sudden intrusion. His eyes widened impossibly larger when Gabriel let go of him and glared at the small teen. “Wow. Look who’s got a little bark today.” Benny tried to shove past but, with a rough push from Gabriel, his head hit the wall and all he could see were stars. “What? You hang out with Ben for a couple weeks and suddenly you think you’re hot shit?”

Ethan backed away a little. “No, I don’t use people like you do.”

Gabriel scoffed and Benny shook his head to try to get rid of the spinning. “Gabe, man, please don’t do this right now. You’re right, I understand now. Just cut it out.”

“I don’t wanna,” Gabriel grabbed the front of Ethan’s shirt. “Someone’s gotta teach the geeks to stay in line.

Ethan closed his eyes and waited for Gabriel to hit him. He knew it was no use trying to fight back, it would just bust his own hands up in the process. But the hands left his coat and the people gathered around gasped. He opened his eyes and seen Benny and Gabriel rolling around on the ground, shouting at each other. Benny punched Gabriel in the nose and had the other howling. He used the time to look up at Ethan – his cheek was bleeding where the scratches had reopened, and his left eye was starting to swell slightly.

“GO!” Benny yelled at him, trying to wave him away while the rest of his team started to run to help Gabriel. “GO HOME!”

Ethan shook his head and tried to reach out to help Benny, but the other quickly stood. His teammates were getting closer and he knew that if Ethan didn’t get out of the way fast, his little heroic stunt would be for nothing.

“GET OUT OF HERE, DORK!”

Pain flashed past Ethan’s face and Benny didn’t back down. He could practically see the steam rolling off of his body. His heart clenched as Ethan took off in a sprint down the hall. His vision went black when a fist connected with the side of his head.

* * *

Ethan’s foot tapping rapidly against the linoleum was the only sound being made in the principal’s office. Next to him, Gabriel was quietly fuming and refusing to look at either of the boys in the room with him. Benny had his head hung low.

They had finished recanting what had happened in the hallway earlier and left alone while parents were called. Ethan was a ball of nerves as he sat next to his worst bully and the guy who had gotten the snot beat out of him for Ethan’s sake. His phone was buzzing rapidly in his pocket. Sarah must’ve gotten his voicemail and, knowing how protective she could be, was probably two minutes away from bursting into the school and putting Gabriel and Benny’s heads on a stick.

“If you think I’m going to let his slide, you have another thing coming to you, Ben.”

“Fuck off, Gabe. I don’t have to listen to you anymore.”

Gabriel turned to look at him, his eyes passing through Ethan as if he was a ghost. “You don’t get to just stop being my friend!”

“You tried to break my ribs! Not cool!”

“Yeah, after you tried to poke my eyes out!” Gabriel huffed and Benny growled. They fell silent again and Ethan wanted nothing but to just run out of the room.

“Ethan! Are you okay, honey?” His mother shouted as she entered the room. She took his face in her hands, turning it side to side to look at every inch. “Please tell me you’re alright!”

He gently took her hands off, fighting the blush forming on his face. “I’m fine, okay?”

Benny’s grandma sauntered into the room; her eyes only focused on her battered grandson. Benny hung his head lower, looking as if the world was ending. She squeezed his shoulder tightly and took a seat in the chair next to him. Ethan could feel the fear coming off of Benny at his grandma’s silence.

He vaguely registered Gabriel’s parents entering the room, choosing to focus on not letting his own mother hold his hand. He wasn’t five anymore, but she treated him as if he was the little kid scared of the monsters under his bed again. He’d grown out of that in middle school.

Principal Hicks sat at his desk again and sighed loudly, catching everyone’s attention. “Now, we all know why we are here. So, I’ll save you the details and get straight to my punishment decision.”

“What? Punishment? Gabriel started it!” Benny yelled, pointing at his former friend.

“I’m not asking you to point fingers, Mr. Weir.” Benny’s grandma smacked his hand back down and Principal Hicks cleared his throat. “Gabriel, you are no longer allowed to be the co-captain of the track team.” Gabriel moved to say something. “Ah-ah, be glad I am not reporting the fight to the authorities. You are a spectacular leader and a good athlete. I expect more from you, Mr. Angelo. You are dismissed.”

Ethan blinked at Principal Hick’s lenience towards Gabriel. He had started the whole situation and had been a terror to the student body – well, at least to Ethan’s portion – for almost four years. How could he just get by with a minor inconvenience?

“Benjamin Weir, two weeks detention and suspension from the track team.” Benny’s mouth fell open. He could practically see his dad’s disappointed eyes in front of him. “You threw the first punch so that is only fair.”

“Wait,” Ethan ignored his mother’s hand on his shoulder. “He didn’t start it, though! Gabriel was giving him grief about breaking up with his girlfriend and something about hanging out with me!”

Benny looked back down at his feet. When he’d thought about it, Ethan had been nicer to him anybody ever had. He wasn’t sure if he was even deserving of it. “Let it go, Ethan.”

“But!”

“Just let it go!” Benny stood from his chair and stomped out of the room, mumbling to himself. His grandma apologized quickly before rushing after him. Ethan deflated against his chair.

“I apologize you were caught up in the mess of this, Mr. Morgan, but you cannot let those boys push you around. If they bother you anymore, let me know and I will make sure the problem is handled.” Ethan could do nothing besides nod. His mother shook the principal’s hand and they left the room quietly.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s going on?” his mother finally said when they had settled into the car and were on the road.

“It’s not fair! Benny was just trying to stand up for me…I think.” Ethan couldn’t help but feel the same pain when Benny had called him a dork. “Principal Hicks barely gave Gabriel any kind of punishment, but he goes all out for Benny.”

His mother shook her head and glanced at him, “It’s not up to us to deal with situations like these, Ethan. Whether or not Benny was trying to help, he was still in the wrong for fighting.”

Ethan crossed his arms and watched the streets pass by for the remainder of the car trip. He made a mental note to text Sarah back later when his nerves weren’t fried. Instead, his thoughts drifted to how Benny had jumped in to take the beating Gabriel was about to give him. The two had been joined at the hip since the second semester of sophomore year. Gabriel had practically grown Benny into the person he was today.

Benny in the past had been exactly like Gabriel Wild, loud and an all around jerk. But, of all those things, he’d never really messed with anyone. In fact, Benny would volunteer – and hit on every girl – at every school fundraiser and helped his grandma at her every whim. He’d never really paid attention to Ethan or the other geeks at school, focusing on his team and partying like crazy. Ethan guessed the party life had worn off sometime between the summer and the first week of senior year. Benny was quieter and, from what Ethan could now see on Benny’s social media, stopped partying as much. He’d seen a few posts here and there about some nerdy TV show and a vague reference or two to the Weird Tales from the Underworld franchise.

All the posts from before sophomore year had been deleted or privated, Ethan hoped. He chewed on the inside of his cheek as he thought, not realizing they had arrived home.


	8. The Fall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANNNND here's the second part! I got a little ahead of myself story-wise but I think it sets up a good spot to take off from. See you guys in the next chapter. Reviews are encouraged and appreciated! :)

Benny sighed as his grandma continued to speak on the phone with who he could only guess was his father. She was in the other room and the cotton feeling of his body, contributed to Benny’s already bad hearing. His head was pounding and the bitemark on his arm was stinging. All he wanted was to just go to his room and never come down again. Eternity in his safe space was enough to maybe, just maybe, calm the squirming in his stomach.

His grandma handed the phone to him with a blank face, appearing sometime when Benny had been too lost in his thoughts. He groaned and took the phone without protest. Might as well face the music.

“Dad, please don’t make me-“

“Dad? Benny, it’s Ethan.”

Benny looked at his grandma in confusion. Ethan made a shifting noise over the phone. He placed the phone against his chest. “What’s going on?”

His grandma rolled her eyes, “I’m not going to tell your father just this once. Ethan told me everything. Now, you need to apologize for being terse with him.”

Benny closed his eyes and let out an aggravated sigh. It was just like her to let him stir his own pot of guilt soup before giving him any kind of answer as to what she was up to. Benny put the phone back to his ear and his grandma disappeared into the kitchen.

“Hey.”

“Hey.” Benny squirmed as the line buzzed between the after Ethan’s answer.

“You really don’t have to apologize for anything. I-I just wanted to say thank you.” Benny could hear Ethan take a deep breath. “For everything. I know you just committed social suicide for me, and I want you to know I appreciate it. So…thanks.”

Benny smiled to himself. “I am sorry, though. I wasn’t thinking straight and I knew you wouldn’t leave if I didn’t do something. I didn’t mean it, by the way.” Ethan made a shifting noise again. Benny wished he could go to his room and look at him through the window. “You don’t have to thank me, Ethan. I thought that, after years of ignoring it all, I should probably do the right thing and stop being so scared. I’m just glad you didn’t get hurt ‘cause trust me, he bites harder than zombies from round eight on Last Rite six!”

Ethan must’ve covered his mouth to laugh because Benny could barely hear it over the phone. “Harsh, dude. Hey, do you think your grandma would mind if you came over to my place for a bit? I got the new Monster Mayhem game and I was thinking we could break it in together?”

Benny bit his lip, his heart pounding in his chest. Why did Ethan make him feel that way? He didn’t really know him and Benny was mostly sure he wasn’t interested in guys. So, what was this?

“Uh, yeah. Let me check.”

* * *

They ended up playing the game together late into the night. Benny had shot a text message to his grandma to tell her he’d planned to stay the night. Ethan was digging in his closet while Benny watched from his bed with an amused smirk.

“Dude! Your closet is like Narnia!”

Ethan rolled his eyes and pulled out the old sleeping bag from inside. He had only used it once when he and his sister had decided to go camping in their backyard last year, but it had just been sitting in his closet ever since then. “Shut up. Be glad I’m not making you sleep on the floor without it.”

Benny raised his hands in mock defense. Ethan looked over at him, struggling to hold back a flinch. His face was still bruised up from the fight earlier in the day but there was a new spark in his eye that made Ethan feel elated. It was the one he used to see in middle school. He laid the sleeping bag on the floor and sat on it, patting the floor next to him for Benny to sit down. The taller boy slunk down and stretched out on the floor next to Ethan, laying back and folding his hands behind his head.

Ethan looked down at him with a smile, “Comfy?”

“It’s like a bed from a fairytale.” He opened one eye – the one not swollen – and smiled at Ethan. “Like The Princess and the Pea.”

Ethan nudged him and snorted. Benny’s mind screamed ‘adorable’ and Benny told it to shut up. “Yeah, well princesses are overrated anyways.”

Benny laughed, “As if, imagine having the power to make any rule you want and still look bomb while doing it! Not to mention having servants to do everything for you.” Benny closed his eyes again with a smug grin.

The silence that surrounded them was something new they had discovered about being in each other’s company. It felt okay, if that made sense. Benny was glad he didn’t have force himself to think of topics to discuss; they just came up naturally between the two. Ethan was still reveling on how goofy Benny actually was behind the cool exterior he had.

The topic of the fight was still unspoken, and Ethan wasn’t sure if he wanted to even bring it up. The shadow under Benny’s left eye was a reminder to what had happened that morning. Ethan pressed his lips together with a sigh.

“Okay, let’s let this out of the way before you worry yourself into a migraine.” Benny sat up and spun to face Ethan. “This morning is not your fault. Its mine.”

Ethan locked eyes with Benny, feeling a heat rising in his stomach. “I don’t understand how it is.”

“I let everything get out of control and you had to see it all come crashing down. If I could’ve been less of a coward, things would be, like, a bajillion times better.”

Ethan rolled his eyes – it was a new reflex Benny triggered from him; Ethan had learned. “I’m pretty sure bajillion isn’t a real number. Anyways, everyone sees the world through rose-tinted glasses sometimes. Plus, you looked happy for a while At least, until all of this started going down.”

Benny looked away, leaning forward. “Well, think about it. I was a weird-looking little kid who had finally gotten into the cool crowd. I thought it was the best but…” Benny got a faraway look in his eye. Ethan reached out, placing a comforting hand on his knee. Benny stared at it for a moment before continuing. “Erica forced our relationship too far too quick. I guess after that, things just started to lose their hype. Gabe was trying to keep me blind to it but after almost dying of alcohol poisoning for the millionth time, I really wasn’t into it anymore.”

Ethan nodded, taking his hand away. He missed Benny’s whine at the loss. “Party life just wasn’t for you?”

They made eye contact again and suddenly everything stood still. Benny’s breath caught in his throat when Ethan’s fingers ghosted over his cheek. Ethan felt the rough scabs along the scratches on his face. He trailed his fingertips over to Benny’s eyebrow to ease the stress on it, at which Benny shut his eyes. Along the other boy’s nose, moving to the side to avoid his mouth and tracing his jawline went Ethan’s touch. Jolts of electricity were shooting through Benny’s body at Ethan’s touch. His eyes opened again once Ethan’s palm laid flat against the cheek that held Erica’s scratches, ending full circle.

Benny’s eyes roamed Ethan’s face, daring a glance at his lips. Ethan wanted to believe that he felt nothing went Benny wet his lips. They were slowly getting closer, Ethan’s reflection in the green of Benny’s irises getting clearer and clearer as they did. He could see the want behind Benny’s gaze, and it made Ethan’s body feel too warm for comfort.

“Ethan? Are you in there?”

The two jumped away from each other at Sarah’s voice, looking at the door with twin wide eyes. Ethan scrambled up, running to the door and opening it with a smile. Benny sighed and fell back down to the floor, slinging his arm over his eyes.

“Sarah! Hey, what are you doing here?”

“You never answered any of my calls or texts. Your mom let me in.” She pushed past him and froze, seeing Benny sprawled out on the floor. “What’s with the jock trash on your floor?”

Benny frowned but didn’t move. “I heard that.”

“You were meant to.” Ethan held Sarah back from kicking Benny and laughed awkwardly.

“Okay, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” Sarah crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him. “Sarah, you know Benny. Benny, this is Sarah, my girlfriend.”

Benny held back a groan, sitting up and plastering on a smile. “Yeah, I remember from dinner last week.” And the relentless flirting he used to do with her. Benny hoped Ethan didn’t remember that part. He stood with a wince, holding out his hand to shake hers.

“No thanks. Don’t know where it’s been.” She recoiled, looking at his hand in disgust. “Wait, is that a bitemark on your arm?”

Ethan guided Sarah back to his bed and Benny laid back down on the sleeping bag. “Yeah, about that. That’s what I called you about this morning.”

Sarah looked him over for any injuries before turning to Benny, “I swear to God, if you touched him-“

“Actually!” Ethan jumped up, standing in front of Benny’s form on the floor. “He took a beating for me. And detention.”

Benny stood, “Maybe I should come back another time. She drove down all this way to see you.”

Ethan turned to him, steeling his nerves at the sight of Benny stretching, exposing the bit of flesh under his shirt and jacket. “O-Oh. Yeah, I guess.” He looked away, hoping his face wasn’t as red as it felt.

Benny raised his hand in a good-bye before leaving the room. Ethan watched him close the door, wanting to call out to tell him to come back. Sarah gently grabbed his arm and Ethan was off put by the disappointment he felt that it was only her.


	9. The Process of Losing and Gaining

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little filler chapter since its been so long since I posted! Hopefully I'll have the next one up soon. We get a little explanation about why Benny was friends with Gabriel and a small interaction with Ethan and Benny!

The slam of Benny’s door made the entire house shake. He leaned against the wooden door and swallowed mouthfuls of air to soothe his burning lungs. He’d all but flew all the way home after leaving Ethan’s house, feeling like his emotions were fueling him onwards. His coat and gloves were long forgotten, left behind in his fervor; the warmth in his house reminded him of this as his fingertips stung his frozen nerves. 

“Benny? Is that you?” His grandma’s voice came muffled through the door. Benny cursed under his breath for being so loud. He glanced at the time. It was a little after midnight and Benny knew that once the hockey game ended at eight o’clock his grandma was dead to the world.

With a sigh, Benny turned to open the door. “Yes, grand- What are you doing?!”

Once the door had opened, his grandma had swung out a metal baseball bat and just missed the tip of his nose by a single hair. She gave him a glare and dropped her defensive stance.

“Don’t scare an old woman like that! What are you doing running around and slamming doors, Benjamin? I thought you were staying at the Morgan’s tonight?”

“I-“ Benny scrambled for a half-ass excuse to shrug off on her but he was coming up with blanks. Stupid Gabe with his stupid punch to Benny’s head that’s made his vision swim all day. “I just wanted to come home. It’s nothing, grandma.”

Benny moved to shut the door, but the tip of the baseball bat stopped it instead. His grandma moved past him and sat on the edge of his unmade bed, resting the bat against the wall. She picked up the picture frame from his nightstand and gently ran her fingers over it. Benny knew which one it was, he never let anyone touch that frame beside himself and his grandma. It was an old picture of himself and his parents on his sixth birthday. He loved it with everything he had.

“You know, what you did for the Morgan boy was very brave of you,” Benny looked down, refusing to meet her eyes when she looked back up at him. “That Gabriel was never a good kid for you to be involved with.”

Benny shuffled his feet, “I know. You can spare me the lecture for tonight.”

“I’m serious about this. It was unhealthy for you to continue to be under the influence of that boy.” His grandma put the picture frame down and crossed her arms. “Gone was my sweet little boy, replaced by someone I didn’t know.”

“I didn’t think you notice.” Benny shrugged. “When Mom died everyone just stopped caring.”

She scoffed and stood. Benny braced himself when she started to make her way towards him. “What makes you think I don’t care about you, dear?”

Benny was surprised by her suddenly gentleness. Memories of crying to himself, voicemails to his dad, visiting his mother’s grave on holidays and birthdays, everything he felt was so pent up and confusing.

“I don’t know. Dad moved away right after she passed away and you stuck me to the piano so you wouldn’t have to deal with it either. Gabe listened to me for the first time and god! It was so good to have someone listen to me.” 

“I’m sorry you felt that way.” His grandma enveloped him in a hug and squeezed tightly. Benny blinked back tears.

“I’m sorry, too.” 

She stepped back and reached up to put a hand on his cheek, “Is that why you were friends with him for so long?”

Benny shrugged, “I wanted to be popular. No one liked the geeky smart-ass I was and Gabe was popular. Plus, he was the closest I had to a best friend.”

His grandma was quiet for a moment, “Give Ethan a chance to show you what it means to have a real friend, Benny.”

“I want to but I don’t want to hurt him or anything.”

“You won’t. You’ve proved that to yourself already.”

Benny nodded and she pulled away with a yawn, “Alright, that’s enough of an interruption to my beauty sleep for the night. Get some sleep.”

She left his room without hearing his response and Benny collapsed onto his bed. He laid fast down for a moment before turning his head to his window and meeting a pair of eyes. Ethan gave him a little wave and a shy smile. Benny couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face. 

Ethan pulled out his phone and a few seconds later Benny’s phone buzzed in his pocket.

He pulled it out and read the text from Ethan.

‘Raincheck on the video games and junk food?’

Benny typed his response, ‘You mean kick your butt while eating everything in your fridge? I’d do that any day.’

Ethan rolled his eyes when Benny looked up, “Prepare to get wrecked, bitch.’

Benny snorted, ‘You kiss your mother with that mouth.’

‘Gross.’

‘But, yes. How’s Monday after I get out of detention?’ Benny flopped over to his side to have a better view of the other teen.

‘Can’t. Chess club.’

‘Boo, you whore.’

Ethan pretended to gasp through the window and dramatically clutched his chest. ‘Tuesday. Be there or I’ll curse your crops.’

Benny gave him a thumbs up. Ethan agreed and he turned to look at something out of Benny’s view. He stepped out of the window and Benny deflated. 

His phone buzzed one more time, ‘Goodnight, B.’

A smile crept up on him again. ‘Goodnight, E.’


	10. Dark Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We get some Erica and Rory time in this chapter and an insight into their relationship! Also ooohhh we've got some supernatural stuff starting to happen in the town! Let me know if you like the supernatural twist, if not I can re-edit it out! Reviews are encouraged and appreciated! Also, if you'd like to discuss this fic or anything MBAV, you can follow me on tumblr! My username is saturdaysandjupiter. Enjoy!

Erica groaned as she got into her car, throwing her purse onto the passenger floor. Her idiot neighbor was back home from his family’s vacation to the States and that meant having to drive him everywhere. Including the late night cravings of sugar and potato chips forcing her to get out of bed and take him to the grocery store for his obscure snacks. They were currently in the parking lot of the nearest Tim Horton’s – well, Erica was in the parking lot; her stupid neighbor, having a heated debate with the cashier over some dorky TV show that every nerd on the planet knew. It’s totally vomit-inducing.

Rory finally came strolling out a mere fifteen minutes later with a smug grin on his face. Erica wondered if he’d let her poke at the acne on his face. Of course, he’d be alright with it as long as she watched the Stars Wars crap he’d been begging her to watch for ages. Was it worth it to sit through an entire four to five hours of nerd culture for a couple zits to pop?

The two blondes had a weird friendship. They’d known each other since birth, seeing as Rory’s mom and Erica’s dad had been best friends since before time was even a concept. Which also meant that she was stuck with the bugs for brains boy sitting next to her. Although, Erica would never admit it, he was her best friend and confidant. But, she would never admit that out loud.

“Thanks for the ride, E-money! By the way, I was right about the eighth doctor being the best of all fourteen. You see, Matt Smith is a good actor and all but his doctor was so kiddy and jokey and not like the serious others guys-“

“Can it, pipsqueak. Before I hurl you out of the window.” Erica rolled her eyes. “And whatever. As long as it gets my dad off my case about being nice to you.”

“So,” Rory stuffed a SnoBall into his mouth. “Anything interesting go down while I was vacationing in Florida, home of the hottest chicks?”

“You mean vacationing with your mom in a bikini?” Erica smirked when Rory glared at her. “Got rid of the loser, Benny Weir. Can you believe he thinks I have no personality?”

Rory blew out chunks of coconut and marshmallow on her dashboard as he doubled over laughing. Erica scowled and threw out a hand to smack him. Rory dodged easily and cleared his throat of the sticky snack, “Dude, he’s not wrong in a way!”

Erica resisted the urge to slam on the brakes, settling for whipping her head to look at him for a moment, “Excuse me?”

“Benny. He’s not entirely wrong.” Rory took another SnoBall; this time he only took a small bite. “Ever since you got contacts and grew into your big feet, you’ve changed.”

“I have not!”

“Erica,” Rory twisted in his seat to get a better look at the blonde. “You used to geek out over Dusk and Dak Peterson like with every breath you took! And then, like overnight, you didn’t want to be seen with me in the hallways and started sitting with those athletes and dating jocks and crap. Like, they’re totally hot, don’t get me wrong, but they have nothing to offer.”

“So why are you defending Benny?”

“’Cause he’s not like those guys. Duh.”

Erica pulled up to a red light and turned to face Rory, “Yes, he is. He’s athletic, smart, and loves parties.”

“No, no, no. That’s the Benny he wants everyone to think he is. Don’t you remember what he was like in high school.” Erica answered with a blank look and Rory sighed dramatically. “Dungeons and Dragons expert, avid cosplayer, and the coolest guy in school! To me, at least.”

Erica vaguely recalled the little shy kid who was at least a foot taller than everyone else who wouldn’t be caught dead without stripes on every piece of his wardrobe. She’d been so gaga over him then as well, but this time, in high school, it was a popularity gain to be with him. Whereas in middle school, it was only a crush on the guy of her dreams. Then, when Gabriel moved into town and took over, Erica shifted her opinion.

“Woah, did you just see that?” Rory was staring out of the windshield, clutching onto his seat and eyes wide. “That was so freaky and so cool at the same time!”

“What are you talking about, doofus?” Erica turned to look out as well. It was the same empty intersection, but, for some reason, Erica got a creepy feeling while looking out into the darkness. As if something was lurking around in the shadows, just outside of the sight.

“There was a guy walking on the crosswalk and this huge black figure just like swooped down and-and…” Rory trailed off as a man walked out of the bushes next to the car. His eyes were trained on the two teens in the car, never blinking.

Erica was ready to tell him how he needed to stop watching all those horror movies when, suddenly, the man turned to them and bared sharp fangs, his eyes glowing an inhuman yellow. The teens screamed loudly.

A few moments later, the light turned green at the intersection, but Erica’s vehicle was empty.

* * *

“Attention, students.” Ethan looked up from his notes as Principal Hicks voice boomed over the intercom. “Signups for the drama club will be at the theatre classroom during free period and all lunches today.”

The brunet went back to scribbling in his journal, deeming the information unimportant. He’d been up the previous night talking to Sarah on the phone and his body was really starting to regret it. Mr. Brown was not making the lecture about symbolism in Hamlet any kind of interesting either. It was either doodle his latest superhero idea or fall asleep and have another dream about kissing King Arthur in the middle of the school’s gymnasium. Ethan shuddered, never again.

His phone buzzed in his bag on the floor loudly. Ethan glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention while he reached in and grabbed it. With the phone hidden under his desk, Ethan gave one last glance to the teacher writing notes on the board.

From Sarah. ‘We’ve got really big trouble.’

Ethan stifled a groan. ‘What’s up now? I thought all the supernatural stuff was over.’

Junior year was one of the hardest years that Ethan and Sarah had ever been through. Alongside dealing with bullies and due dates for pointless assignments, they’d been dragged into the field of stopping the strange happenings in their hometown. Anything from werewolves to warding off an alien attack had complicated their normal lives and caused the two to bond through shared trauma. Ethan had figured it all quieted down once and for all, but it wouldn’t surprise him if it popped up 8again.

‘So did I until I seen HIM last night.’

A chill went down his spine at that. ‘Proof or you’re lying.’

A image came through not even a second later of the one face that Ethan had wished to never, ever see again. He’d rather be punched in the face by Gabriel a million times and stuffed in his locker again before having to face this guy again.

The bell rang and students ran to the door, leaving Ethan sitting shock still in his seat. A hand came down onto his shoulder and Ethan jumped high into the air.

“Woah, hey, sorry,” Benny backed up with his hands in the air. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Hey! Uh, no! It’s fine!” Ethan shoved his phone into his pocket and stood, gathering his things. “What’s up?”

“I was gonna ask if you wanted to go get lunch? There’s a cool little pizza place a couple blocks away. We can make it there, eat, and make it back within the lunch hour.” Benny scratched the back of his neck and gave a shy smile to Ethan. “You absolutely don’t have to, but it would be nice to hang out.”

Ethan’s phone buzzed. “One sec.” He gave Benny a smile and pulled out his phone, keeping it out of view from Benny’s gaze.

‘Meet me in the parking lot.’ He cursed Sarah’s bad timing, knowing he’s really bad at rejecting people. Especially people who sacrificed their popularity for him. (A cute one at that, but Ethan shook that thought away.)

“I actually can’t today.” He said with a sigh, turning back to Benny. “Maybe tomorrow?”

“Oh,” Benny’s smile dropped a little. “Sure, uhm, yeah!”

“See you later?” Ethan asked as he started to back away.

“Yeah!” Benny smiled and Ethan turned away to make his way towards the parking lot where Sarah was waiting for him.

Benny watched him go, his smile dropping as soon as Ethan turned away. “Bye, Ethan.”


End file.
